Astronomy
| Day of meeting | Monthly, 4th Thursday |
| Time | 7:00 - 9:00 |
| Venue | The Gables Bridge Club, Queens Road |
| Leader | Bob Mount |
| Telephone | 01704 809292 |
| Click the link to email: | Astronomy leader |
Astro Group activities include:
- presentations and discussions on every aspect of astronomy
- star gazing and observing with telescopes (weather dependent of course)
- sessions on the purchase and use of telescopes
- visits to observatories and planetariums
- evening talks at nearby universities
- visits to astronomy fairs
** For a full list of upcoming events click on the link to the Astro Group Programme 2019 **
No technical knowledge or observing equipment is required. The purpose of the group is to learn about all aspects of Astronomy and the universe around us. If you decide to purchase a telescope or binoculars sound advice will be given on the most suitable equipment to match your needs and budget.
There is some limited car parking space at the Bridge Club, otherwise on Queens Road. A hot drink and biscuits are available.
------- ESSENTIAL WEB LINKS for the astronomer -----------------------------------
- SpaceWeather. A website giving daily updates on interesting events going on up there. Includes sunspot count, solar and lunar eclipses, occultations and other fascinating topics. Want to know when there's a chance of catching those aurorae or a noctilucent cloud display? This site will help you.
- NASA website. The website for all things in space exploration. Be sure to visit the Galleries section!
- NASA Eclipses. Here you will find a table leading to full details of past and upcoming solar and lunar eclipses. Tells you where you may have to travel to for the best viewing experience. Eclipse predictions are by the renowned Fred Espenak, NASA/GSFC Emeritus.
- Met Office forecast. Find out if you should dust off the 'scope tonight.
Click to view ASTRONOMY PICTURE GALLERY
| Dates for your Diary | |
|---|---|
| Tue Dec 10th | Trip to UClan Preston JHI Winter Presentation by Prof Don Kurtz, entitled ‘The Keplerian Revolution!” This talk explains how, over the past 10 years, the Kepler Space telescope discovered more than 4,000 Exoplanets and what these stellar systems are like. The Professor is a very good speaker, and this is a subject not to be missed if you’re interested in the prospects of extraterrestrial life. Anyone who has yet to reply to my notice, but would like to go, must let me know by the this month’s meeting. |
| Thu Jan 23rd 2020 | “The Stars are Ours!” Prof Don Kurtz will describe how, over the past four centuries, mankind has gone from knowing very little about the stars to determining their life-cycles, properties and composition. |
| Thu Feb 27th 2020 | The Andromeda Galaxy My presentation on The Milky Way’s sister will take you to its centre, compare and contrast these siblings, show their place in the universe and how, as they age, will become ever closer. |
| Thu Mar 26th 2020 | Gravity A new eye on the universe by Rick Tyres, Southport AS, describes how gravitational waves will provide the ultimate means of measuring and examining the universe, possibly to the beginning of time. |
| Thu Apr 23rd 2020 | Women Astronomers & Astrophysicists My presentation on how women progressed, against the odds, to become scientists who made great, but mostly forgotten, contributions to astronomy and the physics of the universe. |